In 2004, a Lynnwood church alerted NGOs to another trafficking case, revealing that one of its members, a Kenyan woman, had been promised $300 a week, vacation time, and school fees for her daughters in Africa by a South Snohomish County couple in return for becoming their live-in nanny. Upon arrival in the U.S., however, her papers were taken from her and she was locked inside the home to cook, clean, and take care of the children.
She was never paid the agreed-upon wages, and no school fees ever made it to her daughters back home. Moreover, she was allowed only one hour out of the house per week to attend church. After 13 months, she finally found the courage to ask for help. The couple, both doctors (one originally from Kenya), pleaded guilty to trafficking charges and were given six months home detention and paid the victim restitution and back wages.
Alex Stonehill
Back in high school, after being yanked
out during her freshman year.
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By the time Lamyaá was 17, co-workers and customers at Lake City Perk were finally beginning to ask questions about her state of affairs. But Sammy always had a way of deflecting their concerns. "When people would question him not having me in school or his control on me," she says, "he would just say, 'I am trying to raise her the Muslim way,' and people would go for it."
But when the Ennassime family left on a vacation to Morocco, leaving Lamyaá behind, she finally got around to planning her escape. Despite Sammy's best efforts, Lamyaá had developed relationships with fellow employees, and though none of them had any experience with trafficking issues or knew the laws relating to Lamyaá's situation, they found a lawyer for her.
"I never thought I was going to leave," says Lamyaá, recalling the terrifying period just before her escape. "But I knew: This is too much; I cannot do this for the rest of my life."
Currently living in a foster home in Federal Way with a year-long court battle behind her, Lamyaá, now 18, is making up for lost time. She's back in high school, and when she's not studying, she's busy with Spanish lessons, belly-dancing classes, an after-school job, and most recently, a bit of modeling. Her restitution for back wages, $65,226.65 in total, is being saved for college, and it looks like Lamyaá—who is currently applying for a special trafficking victims visa and expects to become a full U.S. citizen in three to four years—will fulfill her family's dreams and become an educated American.
"I go to school, I get good grades, I have lots of friends, and I always have someone by my side now," says Lamyaá. "It's like a normal life—finally."
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Sarah Stuteville is a co-founder of The Common Language Project (www.commonlanguageproject.net, a Seattle-based online magazine devoted to covering underreported social justice issues.)
